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Before: Maid of Honor


Nick

After the coffee date, I didn't hear from Ashley again until August. It was a text message, and it read: Remember that time I hooked you up with the South African model because I knew French and you didn't so I translated all your dirty pick-up lines for you all night so you could 'tap dat'?

That was a good night. ya I remember y?

Remember how you said you owe me one?

ya

I'm cashing in. Can you come over?

be right there

I stood up. "I gotta go," I said.

Kevin looked up. We were in the middle of a group meeting, in which Kevin said we were supposed to decide which of the 50-some-odd songs we'd taped we were going to put on the album. His eyebrows zipped together so fast you'd think it was magnetism. "Where are you going?" he demanded.

"I just got a - um - urgent text message and I have something I need to take care of," I said.

AJ had snuck close enough to hijack my phone out of my pocket when I wasn't looking. He leaped up from the couch just as I felt the phone leave my side. "Let's see who Nick's urgent message is," he hooted.

"Give it back," I yelled, going after him.

Brian watched me launch myself over the back of the couch and he ducked as AJ bolted back around, clicking through my passcode screen and pulling up my text messages. How the hell he knew my passcode in the first place is beyond me.

"Is it a nine hundred number?" Howie chortled.

"Pulling the pork is not classified as an emergency, Nickolas," Kevin said in a stern voice.

Brian's eyes sparkled, "In some circumstances --"

AJ suddenly stopped running around the couch and I slammed into his back and almost fell down. I caught my balance at the very last moment, and reach around and snatched the phone out of his hand.

But it was too late.

"It's ASHLEY," AJ yelled.

Silence.

Then, "Ashley... as in Nick-used-to-call-her-Dogface Ashley?" Kevin asked.

"As in plane-crash-makes-Leslie-tell-him-he-loves-her Ashley?" Howie asked.

"As in Nick's-soulmate-who-is-engaged-to-Chris Ashley?" Brian asked.

I shoved the phone in my pocket, my face turning red.

"And she wants him to come over!" AJ added.

Brian's eyes widened, "No. I forbid you to do that. If you do, you're going to have sex with her and regret it afterwards."

"I agree with Brian," Kevin intoned.

"If the bitch wants a booty call, you let the bitch have a booty call," AJ argued.

"Agreed - with AJ," Howie said, high-fiving AJ.

"It's not a booty call," I said.

AJ grinned, "She's calling in a favor for getting you a booty call. It's totally a booty call."

"How the hell fast do you read?" I asked. He really hadn't had the screen up long enough before I stole the phone back from him to get all this information, had he? But he just grinned, in a stupid, all-knowing sort of way. "It's not a booty call," I said.

Kevin looked thoroughly unhumored. "Clearly we're done here..." he sighed. "We're never gonna get this album done."

"We will...just... not yet." I answered, and before he could change his mind, I ducked out of the room.

I have to admit I felt guilty. It was completely my fault that we hadn't put the album out yet. I just wasn't feeling it like I usually was. I mean, I had spent the last six months trying to keep myself out of the media because of my scar, and I wasn't entirely positive I was ready to step out into the limelight with it now, either. I wasn't sure how the fans were going to react to me anymore.

But I'd get serious about the album and my therapy with Dr. R. L. Stein and all would be fine, I told myself. Just... I'd do it tomorrow because today I had to go see what Ashley needed.




Ashley

Nick arrived so fast you'd think he' been run or something.

I invited him inside and got ice coffee out of the fridge. He sat at the table, spinning the glass in front of him as I smeared peanut butter on some crackers and put the plate of them down on the table.

He cleared his throat, "So uh, where's Chris at?" he asked.

"Working."

Nick raised an eyebrow, "What's he doing now?"

"He works with FedEx," I answered.

Nick nodded. "Nice." He looked around. "Are you still... uh..." he paused and his eyebrows went together.

I laughed, "You have no idea what I do, do you?"

Nick made a disgruntled face.

"It's okay, you never paid attention to know," I said with a shrug. I could tell by Nick's face he was waiting for me to say it, but I sipped my ice coffee instead and picked up a cracker. "So Nick," I said, "I have a... favor... to ask of you."

"Wait. What do you do?" he asked, tilting his head.

I sighed. "Think real hard. What did I go to school for?"

Nick licked his lips. "I'm guessing the answer is not so I could go to frat parties."

I shook my head.

He gnawed the inside of his cheek for a moment. "It was like... something... with like... words... or math... or something..."

"Yes, I do something with like words or math or something," I answered.

"What was it?"

"Teaching."

"Right. Yes. That." Nick smiled, but only one side of his mouth went up.

"Anyways. My favor."

"Yeah, your favor." He took a sip of his coffee.

"Okay, so... As you know, I've been dreaming about this whole wedding thing for a really long time."

"You've only been dating the guy for like five months," Nick interrupted, "And you hated him like the day before you started dating basically," he added.

"I mean in general," I answered. "And it's been almost six months since we went out the first time, thank you."

Nick shrugged. "Five, six. Same difference..." he sipped the coffee.

"Well my point is you know how important the wedding is to me, right?"

Nick nodded around his coffee.

"Well, see... I..." I took a deep breath, "I want everything to be perfect at the wedding. I want it to be like a fairy tale. And... Nick, I need your help."

He was staring at me, a slightly frightened look in his eyes. "My help with...?"

"Nick, will you be my maid of honor?"

He looked confused, "Your um.. your maid of honor?"

"Yes," I said.

He bit his lips. "Isn't that usually... I dunno... a maid? As in like... a girl?"

I was afraid he was gonna go this route for the answer. "Well, traditionally, but -- well, remember that movie with Patrick Dempsey? He was a maid of honor."

"Yeah 'cos Dr. McDreamy-Chia-Pet-Head is the person I wanna model after," he snorted.

"The point is, Nick, that it's becoming more common for women with best friends who are guys to ask them to be their maid of honor." I paused, "And Nick, you're my best friend, and I don't really have any other friends that I would want sharing something as important to me as marriage."

"What exactly does this job entail?" he asked.

"Waiting on me hand and foot for the rest of your life," I joked. Nick laughed. "Seriously, just... I dunno... going with me to pick the flowers, and helping me decide what dress I choose." I bit my lip. "Nick.. after this, we're probably not gonna get to hang out the way we used to... you know, before. And... I miss those times."

Nick was staring at the table.

"Please? It would mean the world to me," I said.

He looked up at me, "Okay."